MOUNTAIN LION: Big Cat Shot By Des Moines Police

Des Moines police say a call came in around 9:30 a.m. about a possible mountain lion sighting in the 3900 block of Columbia. When officers searched the area they found the mountain lion in the backyard of a home at 3910 Columbia.

Because of the size of the mountain lion, which measured six-foot-three from nose to the tip of the tail, officers knew it wouldn’t be safe to let the cat continue to roam. When it tried to dash away, officers shot it.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has removed the mountain lion’s body.

Police say there was a report of a mountain lion sighting around Madison Elementary a few hours before the cat was shot, but an ARL officer responding to the area did not locate it.